IF YOU BUY SMART, IT MEANS YOU'RE DUMB

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Amazon Brazenly Locks Man Out of His Smart Home After False Allegation in Latest Big Brother Tech Move

Brandon Jackson is a smart guy with a smart home. The Microsoft engineer’s home in Baltimore is set up to allow him to remotely monitor and control systems throughout the house — such as security cameras, lights and thermostats — even when nobody’s home.

“My primary means of interfacing with all the devices and automations is through Amazon Echo devices via Alexa,” he said in a post on Medium. But on May 25, Jackson’s smart surroundings abruptly went dark. 

“I found that my Echo Show had signed out, and I was unable to interact with my smart home devices,” he said. 

At first, he suspected a data breach, but he checked and ruled that out. “This incident left me with a house full of unresponsive devices, a silent Alexa, and a lot of questions,” Jackson said. 

“Puzzled, I followed the advice of the Amazon app and dialed the customer service number it provided. That’s when things began to take a surreal turn.” 

A customer rep told him to check his inbox for an email. Jackson found one from an Amazon executive, advising him to call. He hesitated, wondering whether it was a scam, but dialed the phone number given in the e-mail. 

“When I connected with the executive, they asked if I knew why my account had been locked,” Jackson continued. “When I answered I was unsure, their tone turned somewhat accusatory. 

“I was told that the driver who had delivered my package reported receiving racist remarks from my ‘Ring doorbell.’” 

Apparently, the driver’s complaint had prompted someone at the company to abruptly lock his account.